Steal Away. . . to freedom by Jennifer Armstrong

The page right after the letter says that the book will be an account (story) of a journey made by Susannah McKnight Emmons
and Bethlehem Reid.
It says there are notes by Mary Emmons, who is also the person who wrote the letter on the pages before it.

The first chapter begins in 1896.
The narrator is from New York City. She has a dear friend named Amy Van Tassel.
The narrator is 13 years old.
Her grandmother, whom she calls Gran lives with them.
The grandmother announces she's received a letter from Bethlehem. Could that be the Bethlehem Reid who stole away to freedom?
Bethlehem is in Toronto, Canada, so Gran is going there and wants to take Mary.
Gran says that Bethlehem "thinks we should write it all down before she gets much worse."

Mary's mother comments that Bethlehem is "an old slave." That makes Gran mad.

Mary says she helped Gran and Bethlehem write their story down. She says she found out that "Bethlehem was no longer in bondage, but that she truly never had been."

Mary

writes a letter

granddaughter to Susannah

Susannah

grandmother to Mary

born in Vermont
sent to Virginia with an uncle after her parents died (She was 13.)

Bethlehem

p. 14 given to Susannah as a slave

friend to Susannah

Susannah's uncle

p. 8 a minister --
relentless, stern, sparing of words
p. 10 a man to instruct, not to converse

"As human beings we each have a responsibility to care for humanity. Expressing concern for others brings inner strength and deep satisfaction. As social animals, human beings need friendship, but friendship doesn’t come from wealth and power, but from showing compassion and concern for others." -- Dalai Lama

“Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.”

-James Madison, welcoming us all back to school

"Perseverance is not a long race: it is many short races one after the other." --Walter Elliot

Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow. -- Anthony J. D'Angelo

“Most people are mirrors, reflecting the moods and emotions of the times; few are windows, bringing light to bear on the dark corners where troubles fester. The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.”― Sydney Harris

Words — so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them.

NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE, The American Notebooks, 184

--notable-quotes.com

Contact Ms. Dorsey at cdorsey@alpinedistrict.orgIf you leave messages on Skyward, it may take days or weeks for me to get them, so please use email if you'd like a timely reply.

"Some days you must learn a great deal. But you should also have days when you allow what is already in you to swell up and touch everything. If you never let that happen, then you just accumulate facts, and they begin to rattle around inside of you." - From the Mixed Up Files of Ms. Basil E. Frankweiler

"When we read a story, we inhabit it. The covers of the book are like a roof and four walls. What is to happen next will take place within the four walls of the story. And this is possible because the story's voice makes everything its own."-John Berger

“Think of educationas a gardenwhere questionsgrow.”Anna Devere Smith

". . . success is not a function of fame or PR, but of hard work and discipline." President Barak Obama

"The future is not a gift. It is an achievement." Robert Kennedy as quoted by President Obama

About Me

I teach English 7, Reading 7, and Creative Writing at American Fork Junior High. I have six children and eight grandchildren, and have lived in Idaho, Utah, Connecticut, and California. I enjoy reading, hiking, camping, gardening, bird-watching, going to plays and museums, and being with my children and grandchildren.